Waltz With The Dragon Boy
by Celestial Empress
Summary: She was good at running away. He wasn't going to allow that to happen again-even if it meant forcefully turning her in to a spirit. Rated M for dark themes and adult content. Slightly OOC.
1. Chapter 1

**_Might just be an idea that I'll scrap later. Leave reviews and tell me what you guys think! Thanks~!_**

* * *

_I_.

It was a fine morning. A fine, bright and musical morning with not a cloud in sight nor a disturbance in the air. The weather was relatively warm and light breeze caressed the tree leaves and flowers. Birdsongs were loud and of abundance; today was the ideal spring morning.

Outside, the citizens of the mountainous town wandered about, doing daily activities such as bike riding, gardening or chores. Children played in the stream by the marina and their laughter carried in the wind like a carefree song of sorts-it was refreshing. The small shops were busier than usual; the sakura festival was around the corner and everyone was gathering the necessary items to enjoy the event.

Down the dusty path leading to the mountains, small houses were aligned the walkway which is where the majority of the population lived. It was quite a little town, mostly forgotten by the outside world considering its location. It was in the middle of mountain ranges and rivers. In order to even reach it here, one would have to travel days along the rocky hills or sail from the nearest city, which would also take quite a while. Visitors were scarce and shipments came almost biweekly, even monthly if the weather were bad.

Nonetheless, Wasureru Valley was a beautiful place with all the necessary supplies it needed it survive. That was probably the reason why the people were so joyful.

Sunlight filtered through the semi-open shades of a peculiar home, invading the room and engulfing it all in a bright, warm embrace. The light fell upon the eyelids of a young girl who in turn stirred and muttered a few unkind things. With the persistence of the sun, she finally woke up and watched the dust particles dance a bit in the air before her eyes finally focused themselves.

She sat up, yawned, and moved strands of brown hair from the inside of her mouth. She stretched and shaded her eyes from the intense sunlight. Gazing out the window and at the blooming sakura tree near her window, she noticed the birds looking right back at her. They were small gold finches that seemed to watch her every move. The girl looked away and shook her head. She swung her legs to the side and off of her bed to touch the warm wooden floor.

The clock on her bedside read "11:56am". It was well in to the morning now.

"Chihiro-san, are you awake?" A face peeked in the doorway and an elderly woman with rosy cheeks entered, bowing as soon as she saw Chihiro awoken. "Goodmorning, Chihiro-san."

"Goodmorning, Anagi-san." Chihiro bowed deeper and added, "please, you don't have to be so formal with me. I'm the guest here after all."

"That may be true," Anagi said and straightened herself and smiled softly, "but you are a woman, aren't you? I have to speak to you like you're an adult, don't I?"

Chihiro rubbed the back of her neck and the embarrassment showed on her cheeks. "Ah, I'm only eighteen, Anagi-san. I-I'm not a real woman yet."

Anagi decided to drop the topic and she sighed. "Breakfast is ready whenever you'd like to come eat. Today is your last day Wasureru, right?"

"That is correct." Chihiro tied her hair with a shimmering red hair-tie. "I think I've been a pest long enough in your home, though I greatly appreciate you allowing me to stay."

"You were never a pest!" Anagi said quickly and shook her head, long white locks flowing. "Never think that, Chihiro-san. You are a sweet girl who has the biggest heart I've ever seen. It's a shame you must leave so suddenly, though. Weren't you planning on staying until the summer?"

Chihiro slipped on her sandals and gathered up her bathing materials. She slightly cringed at Anagi's persistence. "Something came up..."

Anagi noticed Chihiro's change in attitude and she bowed again, apologizing over and over. "Pardon my nosiness! I didn't mean to butt in to your personal life. I know you're a busy woman who's traveling for her own dreams and reasons-I shouldn't have been so nosy!"

Chihiro smiled and slung with white bath towel over her shoulder and waved off all of Anagi's apologies. "It's no big deal. Really. I just gotta follow my heart, wherever it decides on leading me. Wasueru was the perfect stop for my inspiration; I've made plenty of poems from observing everything here. But now it's time to move on, y'know?"

Anagi's eyes were wet from unshed tears and she immediately flung her arms around Chihiro and bawled in to her stomach. "Oh, you are such a wonderful girl, Chihro-san! I am blessed to have had you at my home! Never change! Never, ever!"

Chihiro laughed and tried to reassure the old woman of never changing. She patted her back and the fake smile on her face faded almost instantly. It sucked. It all really sucked.

* * *

Chihiro leaned in to the back of the square tub and placed her washcloth on her forehead, a signature sigh leaving her lips.

She was going to be on the move again. Camping out in forests, staying at local inns, meeting temporary people that seemed to be going to be around forever...This was the life she chose. The life of a wandering (sometimes starving) artist who was more or less running away from real world problems than chasing her own dreams. Like adult responsibilities for example. Paying rent for a shitty apartment in the city or car insurance for a car that loved to clonk out at any time. By now, Chihiro probably owed a ton of money to the insurance company.

So to avoid all of that, Chihiro decided to take her "poetry" and travel the country with what little money she had left over from working at the diner over the years. It wasn't enough to always be able to take taxis to her next destination, but it was enough to live off of...sometimes.

This arrangement wasn't all that bad though. Chihiro met a few publishing companies and thieving rich snobs who took a liking to her poetry and mediocre artwork. They liked how vivid the imagery was, like she was actually witnessing the events going on. They all seemed to extremely love "The Dragon Boy" saga. It was a fantasy that revolved around just that; a dragon boy who saved the day and fell in love with a beautiful little princess and fought evil witches and paper birds. It gained a lot of respect. And money.

Little did they know, "The Dragon Boy" was far from a figment of Chihiro's imagination.

"Which reminds me," Chihiro said aloud and dipped deeper in to the bath, groaning.

She had one of those dreams again. The dream on her old friends begging for her to return that that cursed world. The world of spirits and magic. The world of soot sprites and train rides in the middle of the ocean. The Spirit World.

Kamaji, Lin, all of them. Calling to the sky and praying that Chihiro would return to save them. From what, though? She could never make it out. It was always static when she'd ask them what was wrong. It couldn't be anything too dangerous, though. Yubaba was forced to step down from head of the Onsen after enslaving the workers and almost tricking Chihiro in to staying in the Spirit World forever. So she couldn't have been the threat.

Chihiro removed the washcloth from her forhead and bit the inside of her cheek.

Why did she care, anyway? Those people didn't remember her. She was a little kid at the time and she and her parents caused nothing but disturbances their whole stay. What good was Chihiro to them still? It wasn't like she could go back there. Stumbling upon that realm was a complete accident. Surely the spirits made sure no "accident" like that would ever happen again.

Then again...it wouldn't hurt to just be able to say hello to them all, even for a brief moment. To see Kamaji and the little soot sprites working hard in the boiler room, oh, what Chihiro would give to see that! And Lin, sassy and tough, the only female friend she'd ever made. She wondered how Lin was holding up after being freed from forcefully working at the Onsen. Did she stay? Leave? So many questions remained unanswered.

And what about him?

"What about him?" Chihiro closed her eyes and fought off the rising blush in her cheeks. "He was rude and apathetic, even after everything."

That wasn't true and she knew it. Haku, though sometimes cold to others and quite bossy, was nothing but kind to Chihiro after regaining his freedom. He assisted her in saving her parents and led her back to the human world.

"Will we meet again sometime?"

"Sure we will."

"Promise?"

"Promise. Now go...and don't look back."

"Why?" Chihiro asked herself and tried hard not to dwell too long on that memory. It was, evidently, to no avail. "Why couldn't I look back? Did Haku even really care to make that promise? Doubt it." She ran her fingers through her hair and shut her eyes.

Stupid dream, stupid past, stupid everything! All she needed to focus on was getting her life back on track, not the past and little wishful thinking. She had a poem to send by the end of the week and she hadn't even started on it yet. After the bath she was going to eat and nap before hitting the road and making her way to the city. Lucky for her, the weekly bus was coming that night to go back there and she had more than enough money to pay for the fare.

Day dreaming was going to stop right then and there. In order to achieve her true dream, she was going to have to forget about all of them, even Haku. She was eighteen for goodness sake! Way too old for any of this.

Chihiro stood up and smoothed her hair back. The water cascaded down her long less and back in to the tub and she stepped out on to the smooth marble.

"New days begin now." She thought and patted her underarms dry. "No more distractions. If anything, I'll take those pills to stop my dreams if I need to. No reason to think about them any longer." She nodded. "Right!"


	2. Chapter 2

**_Made chapter two becaue it's been on my mind all day. Read and review as always!_**

II.

_"You're worrying me, Chihiro." Haku put down his ceramic bowl of half-eaten ramen and looked at Chihiro's still-full bowl with furrowed eyebrows. "Why aren't you eating?"_

_Chihiro blinked when Haku spoke to her and she looked up from her bangs and blushed darkly. She turned away and looked out at the crashing waves and the moon positioned right over the water. A crisp breeze came through and caressed both hers and Haku's hair in its passing. Haku sighed and put his elbow on the wooden table and rest his chin in his palm. He didn't say anything; he simply watched Chihiro try to avoid his gaze and found amusement in her discomfort._

_Chihiro cleared her throat and returned her gaze back to her now-cold ramen and picked up her chopsticks, still not looking Haku in the eyes. "I don't know why you decided to eat out on the balcony as cold as it is out here." She pulled her chopsticks apart and they came out to a perfect pair. "I'm going to catch a cold and it'll mess me up tomorrow when I finally save my parents."_

_Haku tilted his head and couldn't help but burst in to a laughing fit. Chihiro, completely disgusted and shocked by this, shoved her ramen in her mouth and her angry blush on spread wider across her face. The Dragon Boy had to silence himself with his hand over his mouth, but even she could still see the laughter resonating in his emerald eyes. Chihiro slammed her chopsticks on the table and caused her mug to tip over and spill out all on the floor._

_"Just what is so funny?! You think I'm kidding around but-"_

_"I just find your inability to express yourself to be highly amusing." Haku said and lifted his mug and took sip of the warm jasmine tea. Chihiro scoffed at this._

_"I'm expressing myself now, aren't I?!" Chihiro said and sat back on her heels, gritting her teeth. He always saw right through her. Always! "I'm going to bed." She stood and he, too, stood and moved quicker than Chihiro could even see. _

_"Wait." Haku gently gripped her wrist and the frown on his face made Chihiro's heart pound just a bit faster. "I apologize-I shouldn't have been pointing out the obvious."_

_"Seriously?!"_

_Haku smiled again and let Chihiro's wrist go. Chihiro rubbed it, acting as if Haku held her with a vice grip. The mutter that left her lips took Haku by surprise and his grin only broadened._

_"Mind saying that just a tad louder?"_

_Chihiro swallowed and turned her back to him and folded her arms. "Leave me alone!"_

_Haku went behind her and wrapped his slender arms around her waist and buried his face in to her hair. He sniffed it and Chihiro wanted to honestly die from embarrassment at that moment._

_"Your hair smells wonderful." He spoke softly and sniffed it again. "It smells like me. I take it that you've been using the blanket I lent you, hm?"_

_"Well, yeah," she said as though it would've been stupid to not use it, "it's cold in the rooms at night and the blanket Lin gave me wasn't helping."_

_"Right." Haku said and looked straight out at the water. "I'm still waiting."_

_"For what now?!"_

_"For you to repeat what you said a few moments ago."_

_Chihro sucked in a breath and shut her eyes. "You just seem happier, okay? That's all I said!"_

_Haku put his hands on the wooden railing and Chihiro opened her eyes when she felt Haku pressing on her. She turned around and nearly jumped out of her skin to see how close his face had just become._

_"H-"_

_"Only a fool wouldn't be happy after learning their true identity." Haku said and the smile on his face was gone. "You helped me regain my freedom, Chihiro. Why wouldn't I be happier?"_

_Chihiro tried to take a step back but she was already against the railing. "I-I didn't mean it that way. It's just... I've never seen you smile so much until now and it's kinda scary because you're kinda scary-"_

_"I'm scary?" Haku feigned hurt and his eyes were casted downwards. "Oh. I see." He turned to move away, but Chihiro caught him by his sleeve and it took him almost all of his control to not grin._

_"I didn't mean that either!" She groaned and covered her face with both hands. "I'm sorry, I'm just really dumb!"_

_"You don't say?" Haku joked and pried her hands from her hot face. "You're always so good at running away, Chihiro." They both finally looked at one another directly. _

_Another breeze flew by and the water down below sounded much more calm than it did earlier. Chihiro always felt this way when she actually had the nerve to look at the Dragon Boy. His face would shine and the fiery rage of his beast counterpart would flicker in his eyes. He was dangerously handsome for such a young boy. His hair moved again in the next breeze and Chihiro's brown eyes widened. Haku was-_

_"Chihiro." He called her out of her trance and she had to blink numerous times to remember where she was. Haku put his hand on her cheek and Chihiro hoped her cheeks wouldn't burn him. "I'm going to miss you dearly."_

_Chihiro could barely form coherent sentences. "R-Right, I'm gonna miss you, too, sorta..."_

_"Sorta?" Haku laughed and put his other hand on her face. "Is it selfish to say that I don't want you to leave me?"_

_Chihiro's eyes were slightly lidded and Haku knew he had her then._

_"I mean it." He spoke so softly. Chihiro's heart was pounding faster. "I lost you once and getting another opportunity to see you again...I don't think I have the morality in me to let you go. Not yet, anyway." His thumbs caressed her cheeks and all Chihiro could do was stare like a dazed fool. _

_"I want you to stay with me." Haku moved his face to her right cheek and kissed where his hand previously was. The waters picked up again. "For now, or forever. Whatever you want, Chihiro. My Chihiro."_

_"I can't stay forever." She was silenced by another peck on her other cheek and she audibly whimpered._

_"Why?" Haku asked and it was clear that he was trying his utmost hardest to persuade her. Even if it meant using a little magic._

_"Because..." she was almost completely limp. Haku had to keep her upright by placing a hand on her waist. "I'm a human and you're all Spirits."_

_Haku smirked and rest his forehead on hers, just like they did earlier when his true identity was rediscovered. "But, my Chihiro, I can make you a Spirit."_

_Chihiro's lip trembled and Haku placed his thumb against it. "My parents..."_

_"They will be fine." He meant that. "We can save them tomorrow and they'll go back to the human world. You'll just remain here. With me. We can take back the Onsen, free Lin, Kamaji and everyone else and it'll be great, Chihiro, I promise you."_

_The girl was visibly struggling with herself and Haku bit his lip and awaited her answer. Surely, she would comply. The amount of magic he was using was a fool-proof way of getting her to agree. There was no way-_

_"I can't." Chihiro said and moved her face from his hand and pushed Haku back with her own. "I can't!" _

_Haku was absolutely shocked. His body shook with confusion and rage. Didn't she want to be with him? Why was she still resisting?!_

_"I'm sorry, Haku." Chihiro sniffled and wiped her teary eyes. "But I can't stay here. I'm not a spirit, and I don't want to be one! I want to go back home with my parents and go to school and be a human! That's where I belong." Chihiro lifted her head and her heart instantly shattered._

_Haku was crying._

_The Dragon Boy was actually crying._

_"Haku..." Chihiro's eyes watered again. "I'm so-"_

_Haku held up his hand and he smiled through his tears. "Save me the sympathy." It was his turn to avoid her gaze. "I was a fool to believe that I could keep you for myself. Please excuse me, for I have things to do. I'll see you tomorrow at the trial."_

_Before Chihiro could even answer, Haku vanished and in his wake storm clouds formed in the sky and a light rainfall began to fall. The rain was warm and Chihiro couldn't decide whether it was actual rain, or the teardrops of the white dragon hurrying away in the distance._

xx

Chihiro woke with a start and fell from her seat on to the bus floor.

"Are you alright back there?" The driver hollered over the noise and Chihiro groaned on the floor.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" She stood up and had to hold on to the pole for support.

"Sorry about the bumpiness; we're in the mountains now and it's always a rocky road!"

Chihiro rubbed the sleep from her eyes and managed to sit back down before going over another large rock and bouncing up so high, she hurt her butt when she fell back down.

"Knew I should've walked." She said to herself and then scoffed at how stupid that idea was.

_"Yeah, let's just trek along an endless mountain range and get mauled by bears,"_ she thought, _"real smart thinking, Chihiro." _

Chihiro pulled her suitcase in between her legs and huffed a sigh while looking out the bus window. What a dream that was. Actually, what a memory. That was far from a farfetched dream, he really did try to make her stay in the Spirit World with him. And after that, he acted like nothing happened when she was finally able to cross the river and go back to the human world. He even made a damn promise to see her again!

The girl put her hand on her face and noticed her reflection. She looked awful; hair disheveled, dried saliva on the corner of her mouth. She looked like the average homeless artist.

The view of the passing mountain region was breathtaking. Trees were surplus as well as other green life in the crevices of the rocks and boulders. Though there were no houses in sight, the area was home to many animals. Moose, deer, rabbits, foxes and probably a bear or two.

"Kinda reminds me of the forest back then." She said aloud and hummed at that memory.

Being only ten at the time and sour about the sudden moving arrangement, Chihiro was far from admiring nature's beauty. All she did was complain, scream and hide within her mother's shadow. It was hard to believe that she was taking in the sight without a feeling of uncertainty or fear now. Time really does change a lot of things.

"Just so you know," the bus driver spoke out again, "we'll hit the city in less than a day. The mayor implemented a tunnel through the mountain to make travel quicker and more efficient, though it doesn't stretch from the city to Wasueru. Dunno why, but I guess they mayor has his reasons."

"Tunnel, huh?" Chihiro smiled fondly at the memory that came next. "It'd be funny if that tunnel led me back there."

Part of her secretly wished that she would stumble upon that sacred entrance once more. But the logical, adult side knew how childish and impossible that wish was. The Spirit World would never be accessible to humans ever again. Only in her dreams would she be able to contact her eight year old friends again.

While thinking about it, Chihiro dug on her satchel and pulled out her leather journal with anime-like stickers on the cover. She also retrieved her pen and tapped her lips with the tip before opening it up and continuing her latest work.

_Though hurt by the absence of his Princess,_

_The Dragon Boy continued to gift his land with gentle rain._

_His people were unaware, however,_

_That this miracle was a water form of his pain._

_The Dragon Boy stood in the flowerbed where he first met his Princess_

_And silently weeped out a sad song_

_A lament of the vanishing of his lover,_

_A tale of how she had been gone for so long._

_Oh, how he missed his ray of sunshine_

_How he missed the only light in his heart._

_He couldn't bear it much longer_

_For them to be so far apart._

_"My dearest Princess," he would cry,_

_"Please, come back and waltz with me until night time falls_

_I miss you so dearly,_

_Can't you hear my heart call?"_

Chihiro read the finished part of the poem over and over again and she slammed the book shut. The memory had somehow flowed from her heart and on to the paper.

As much as she hated to admit it, she could hear it.

The calling of his heart. The longing wails of his cries.

_What he didn't know_

_Was that his Princess was on her way back to her love_

_Back in to his arms, _

_And back to being his sunshine, in the sky above._

xx


End file.
